Pneumatic-cushioned vehicle-wheel.



4 O 9 1 7 1 Y A M D E T N E T A P D Rm 3 0 6 7 0 N PNEUMATIC GUSHIONEDVEHICLE WHEEL.

APPLIUATION FILED APR. 29, 1903.

N0 MODEL.

WITNESSES: 26141 VWM/ZZ INVENTOR W'i "l w ATTORNEY UNITED STATESPatented May 17, 1964.

PATENT OFFICE.

DANIEL F. MINAI-IAN, JR, OF ORANGE, NEW JERSEY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 760,136, dated May 17,1904.

7 Application filed April 29, 1903 Serial No. 154,744- (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, DANIEL F. MINAHAN,J r. a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Orange, in the county of Essex and State of NewJersey, have invented and produced a new and useful Improvement inPneumatic-Cushioned Vehicle-Wheels; and-I dohereby declare the followingto be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such aswill enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make anduse the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and tonumerals of reference marked thereon, which form a part of thisspecification.

The objects of this invention are to secure in a wheel all the effectsof a pneumatic cushion-tire without the liability to wear and punctureso common in such wheels, to this end to locate the cushion at the hubof the wheel and secure a construction which will permit the samecushioning action as when a pneumatic tire is on the rim, and to obtainother advantages and results, some of which may be referred tohereinafter in connection with the description of the working parts.

The invention consists in the improved pneumatically-cushionedvehicle-wheel and in the arrangements and combinations of parts of thesame, all substantially as will be hereinafter set forth and finallyembraced in the claim.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals ofreference indicate corresponding parts in both of the figures, Figure 1is a side elevation of a wheel of my improved construction, aportion ofthe rim and spokes being broken away; and Fig. 2 is a centralcrosssection of the same.

In said drawings, which illustrate a wheel fast on or driven by itsaxle, 1 indicates such an axle having mounted upon itself near the outerend a hub 2. Said hub is centrally bored to receive the axle and fartherout from its center is provided with an annular cushion seat or drum 3,having at its opposite ends flanges 4 5, projecting peripherally aconsiderable distance beyond its surface. Said hub lies at its innerside against a shoulder 6 on the axle, and nuts 7 8 and a washer 9 onthe outer end of the axle serve for clamping the hub against saidshoulder. Preferably the drum portion of the hub and its outer flange lare cast in one integral piece, while the inner flange 5 is formed byaseparate casting or plate bolted against the inner end of the firstcasting, as by bolts or screws 10. This construction permits the removalof one flange for the insertion upon the seat or drum 3 of the cushion11, whicl is preferably a tubular pneumatic ring of any suitable andwell-known construction. Although I have shown said annular cushion assubstantially square or rectangular in crosssection, it may obviously beof any desired shape, and, furthermore, the said cushion may be otherthan a pneumatic tube, if desired, so long as it has the necessarycushioning qualities, and its ends, although brought together,

need not be joined to form a complete ring. Outside the said cushion andlikewise between the flanges 4 5 is an annular band 12, having at itsouter surface means for the attaching of spokes 13, which extend outwardto the rim 14c of the wheel, said spokes and rim being of any ordinaryconstruction and the latter being provided with a tire 15 of a solidrubber or any other suitable kind. Preferably the means for attachmentof the spokes 13 to the band 12 consist of outer peripheral flanges 16at the opposite edges, which are bent or pressed inward, as at 17 andperforated to receive the headed ends of the spokes; but any otherappropriate means may be employed. The band 12, it will be understood,is free to move or slide between the flanges l 5 of the hub according asthe annular cushion 11 is compressed by the weight or strain upon thewheel. To prevent rotation of said band 12 and outer portion of thewheel independent of the hub, however, and at the same time permit theradial sliding above referred to, pins or studs 18 project outwardlyfrom the opposite flanges 16 16 of the band 12 and lie in closed radialslots 19 19 of the flanges a 5.

When it is desired to have the wheel loose on its axle instead of fast,as shown, the nuts 7 8 and washer 9 are not screwed up to clamp the hub,but are set far enough away from the same to permit rotation on theaxle, as will be understood. Under these conditions also the pins 18 maybe either left in the slots 19 or removed entirely.

Obviously my invention may be adapted to various kinds of Wheels by suchslight modifications of construction as would suggest themselves to anyskilled Workman, and I therefore do not Wish to limit myself by thepositive descriptive terms therein employed, except as the state of theart may require.

Having thus described the invention, What I claim as new 15* l Thecombination With an axle, of a hub providing an annular portion havingan interior bearing for said axle and an interior flange at one end, anannular cushion upon said an-

